The present invention relates generally to vehicles and, more particularly, to vehicle floor mats.
It is often desirable to place a floor mat on top of carpet within a vehicle in order to keep the vehicle carpet clean and to reduce wear and tear thereof. Unfortunately, floor mats may be subjected to twisting motions from the entrance and exit of vehicle occupants which can cause slippage. Such slippage may lead to injury of an occupant when entering or exiting from a vehicle. In addition, a floor mat may slip over a vehicle carpet so as to become jammed under the accelerator, brake, or clutch pedals of the vehicle preventing proper operation thereof which may present a bothersome and possibly dangerous condition.
Various ways of securing floor mats to vehicle carpeting to prevent slippage thereon are known. For example U.S. Pat. No. to Altus et al. describes a floor mat retainer having an upper surface, a lower surface, a plurality of male fasteners depending upwardly from the upper surface, and bristles depending downwardly from the lower surface. The retainer lower surface is placed on top of a vehicle carpet, and a floor mat, having a plurality of openings therein, is placed on top of the retainer upper surface so that the openings fit over the respective male fasteners. Female fasteners, are placed over the top of the male fasteners to fasten the floor mat to the retainer. The male fasteners are formed integrally with the retainer.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,003,664 to Wong describes a clip for securing a mat to a carpet that has a main portion and a spike extending from the main portion. The spike is inserted into the carpet such that it underlies the carpet with the main portion exposed atop the carpet. Means are provided to secure the mat to the main portion using a hook and loop type fastener. The hook portion is provided on the main portion and the loop portion is provided on the downwardly facing surface of the mat.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,403,895 to Caldwell et al. describes a floor mat retainer that is configured to be secured to mass backed carpet installed on the floor of a vehicle. A vehicle floor mat is releasably secured to the retainer by insertion of a portion of the retainer through an opening in the floor mat.
In view of the above discussion, apparatus for securing floor mats to vehicle carpets are provided. According to an embodiment of the present invention, an apparatus for securing a floor mat to a vehicle carpet includes a back plate that underlies a vehicle carpet, a top plate that overlies a floor mat, and fasteners that are configured to removably secure the back and top plates together such that the carpet and floor mat are sandwiched therebetween. The top plate has an upper surface that has promotional indicia (e.g., vehicle logo, sports team logo, etc.) thereon. Each fastener includes an upper portion and a lower portion that are configured to threadingly engage with each other.
According to embodiments of the present invention, an apparatus for securing a floor mat to a vehicle carpet includes a back plate having an aperture formed therethrough, a fastener, and a top plate. The fastener includes a lower portion that extends through the back plate aperture and respective apertures in a carpet and floor mat, and an upper portion that extends through the floor mat aperture. The fastener upper portion is removably secured to the fastener lower portion such that the carpet and floor mat are sandwiched between the upper and lower portions. The fastener upper portion has a free end that extends above the floor mat and that includes a circumferentially extending ridge. The top plate is removably secured to the upper portion free end. The top plate has a female adapter that is configured to engage the ridge and removably secure the top plate to the fastener. The top plate may be configured to apply compressive force on the floor mat to facilitate sandwiching the floor mat and vehicle carpet together. The top plate has an upper surface that has promotional indicia thereon.
According to embodiments of the present invention, an apparatus for securing a floor mat to a vehicle carpet includes a back plate having an aperture formed therethrough, a retention post having an enlarged end and a free end, and a top plate configured to be removably secured to the retention post free end such that the carpet and floor mat are sandwiched between the top and back plates. The retention post free end extends through the back plate aperture and respective apertures in a vehicle carpet and floor mat. The top plate has a female adapter that is configured to snugly engage the retention post free end and removably secure the top plate to the retention post. The female adapter includes a cylindrical chamber having a circumferentially-extending channel formed in a wall thereof. The retention post includes a circumferentially-extending ridge adjacent the free end. The diameter of the ridge is slightly larger than the diameter of the cylindrical chamber. The female adapter is configured to expand slightly to allow the ridge to move into the cylindrical chamber and engage the channel, resulting in a removable, snug fit between the retention post and the top plate. The top plate may be configured to apply compressive force on the floor mat to facilitate securing the floor mat and vehicle carpet together. The top plate has an upper surface that has promotional indicia thereon.
According to embodiments of the present invention, an apparatus for securing a floor mat to a vehicle carpet includes a back plate having a retention post extending therefrom and a top plate that is configured to be removably secured to the retention post such that the carpet and floor mat are sandwiched between the top and back plates. The retention post includes a free end having a circumferentially extending ridge. The free end extends through respective apertures in a vehicle carpet and floor mat. The top plate has a female adapter that is configured to engage the ridge and removably secure the top plate to the retention post. The top plate may be configured to apply compressive force on the floor mat to facilitate sandwiching the floor mat and vehicle carpet together. The retention post also includes a tapered intermediate portion between the free end and the back plate. The tapered intermediate portion has a radially extending shoulder. A retainer plate is utilized to secure the back plate to the carpet by being positioned between the retention post tapered portion shoulder and the carpet. The top plate has an upper surface that has promotional indicia thereon.
According to embodiments of the present invention, an apparatus for securing a floor mat to a vehicle carpet includes a retention post, a retention clip that is configured to underlie the carpet, and a top plate that is configured to be removably secured to the retention post such that the carpet and floor mat are sandwiched between the top plate and retention clip. The retention post includes opposite first and second free end portions and an intermediate portion between the first and second end portions. A circumferentially-extending slot is formed within the retention post adjacent the second end, and the retention post intermediate portion includes a radially extending flange. The retention post is configured to extend through respective apertures in a vehicle carpet and floor mat such that the radially extending flange is disposed between the floor mat and the carpet. A retention clip is secured within the slot so as to underlie the carpet. The retention post first end portion includes a circumferentially extending ridge. The first end extends through respective apertures in a vehicle carpet and floor mat. The top plate has a female adapter that is configured to engage the ridge and removably secure the top plate to the retention post first end.